Ai’s Tangent - A Spark of Excitement

 “Booorrrred!” Ai yelled out again, her head lying against one of the many tables within the Adventurer’s Guild. Her party Amstec arrived as early as possible, only to be told they had to wait. Ai could barely hold her excitement as her ivy vines slithered and twitched. She was like a child asking ‘are we there yet?’ over and over again.

“Come on, Ai, it’s only been half an hour. Could you be a little more patient?”

“Shut up Wolf. Half an hour is an hour too long.” Patience was one thing Ai couldn’t do. Her goal was so close after twenty five years of waiting, she had no desire to wait a moment longer.

“You could at least use my name, you stinking Ivy,” Rufus muttered under his breath, letting out an annoyed sigh.

Hey, you don’t have to be rude! Ai internally griped, giving Rufus the stink eye. Of course, her glare roused almost everyone other than her party. The adventurers were split into two camps: unsheathing their weapons or becoming completely paralyzed. The receptionists’ smiles were strained with tension. The only person acting normal was a strange person wearing a rag, not that anyone noticed.

Rufus let out another sigh, ruffling his reddish-black locks. “Aster, talk some sense into this lazy shorty. I think her brain got stuck in her breasts.”

Seriously! What did I ever do to you? The intensity of her gaze increased, causing some to pass out where they stood. They didn’t have the gall to crumple to the ground.

Aster slowly opened her eyes like a doll coming to life, her appearance shifting more feminine than usual. “Stop.” With that single world, Aster closed her eyes, returning to her previous state. A motherly scolding as simple as it was terse.

Fine, just because you asked so nicely. Ai vacantly stared at the table once again, showing only a mild look of annoyance to everyone else. A collective gasp echoed throughout the guild, along with the sounds of a few bodies hitting the floor. It was only a brief reprieve, however. Ai soon raised her head, brushing the hair out of her face. The rest of the party glanced in the direction she was glaring.

One of the receptionists was standing directly behind Rufus, tears streaming down her face, her uniform soiled. As Rufus offered his apologies as the party leader, Ai was visibly getting pumped up, ready to finally, finally, learn how to improve her plant magic.

The receptionist gave a quick little jump, failing to adopt a neutral expression. “Members of the Proficient… er, C-rank party Amstec: Rufus Varg, Aster Retsa, Ai Kisso and, um…” The receptionist gave a quick look around the room.

“Emma’s currently gathering supplies at the market,” Rufus explained.

“Yeah, we don’t need that human here!” So, hurry up and introduce us to the proctor already!

“Um… but…” The receptionist hemmed and hawed for a brief moment, but realizing there was nothing she could do, she continued like normal. “Then, barring Emma Martin, would you please follow me? I’ll lead you to the guildmaster and your proctor for the Rank-Up Exam.”

~~~

Once Ai and the others reached the guildmaster’s office, they took a seat. Everyone but Ai – who was off in her own little world staring at the door – listened intently as the guildmaster explained the quest.

“Your goal is to apprehend the bandits who have made their base within Dragon’s Sigh. If you manage to find any stolen goods, we would like you to retrieve them as well. An A-rank proctor will be assigned to your party to oversee–”

Knock knock knock!

“A bit early, but that’s fine,” the guildmaster muttered. “Come on in.”

Finally, it’s time!

The receptionist came in with the proctor for the exam, and Ai…

…couldn’t have been more disappointed.

The man looked like the walking definition of the words ‘weak’ and ‘suspicious’. A rag covered his entire body, leaving only the bottom part of his face exposed. But even then, his expression was somehow hidden from view, as though an illusion had been cast over it. His hands were covered with white gloves that looked completely out of place. Other than that, it was impossible to discern anything about him. In fact, if the guildmaster hadn’t called the proctor a ‘him’, then Ai wouldn’t even know his gender.

It was obvious that he was actually weak though. Ai couldn’t feel any mana flowing from him whatsoever. Every living creature had at least some flow of mana, even humans regardless of if they could express it. However, his was almost nonexistent, like an average person walking on the streets.

Is this a joke? How is he supposed to be an A-rank? Ai wondered, doubt slowly creeping into her mind. Even Aster, who was usually so immaculately straight-faced, looked as though she was panicking. As such, she expressed her concerns to the guildmaster. Sure, the main reason was because it didn’t seem like Ai would be able to learn anything, but she also didn’t want to inconvenience her party. After spending five years with them, they were her closest friends – close enough to tease each other with scathing insults and hurtful remarks, much to their chagrin.

But contrary to what Ai expected, the guildmaster playfully smiled. “Well, if you are that worried about my choice, why not have a mock battle? All you have to do is land one hit to win.” Ai couldn’t understand how the guildmaster could be so confident, but at the same time, a part of her mind believed she was right, though she didn’t understand why. So to find out, she agreed to the mock battle.

And within a minute, she was utterly trounced.

At first, given his gait and unwillingness to fight, she thought the proctor was an idiot or conceited, but she was sorely mistaken. He dodged her first attack effortlessly, twisting his body with minimal movement. Her subsequent attacks had no effect, and he even destroyed her vines by letting them crash into each other. It was a pleasant surprise, but with how little mana he had, she wouldn’t be able to learn anything. So, using her strongest trap, she easily ensnared him.

And yet, as the jaws of ivy began to close around the proctor, Ai doubted herself. She was about to win, but she couldn’t see herself sealing the deal. But why? What am I missing?

Then she noticed it: something that she shouldn’t have, couldn’t have noticed.

The proctor was smiling.

And the next moment, he disappeared.

It was then that Ai realized her folly. Aster’s panic wasn’t due to his weakness, but rather because of the over abundance of mana he had. The receptionist’s clothes, which should have been drenched, were clean. And, for a brief moment, she felt his mana. Such perfect and almost imperceptible control – something that should be impossible for any living creature. If anything, her defeat left her with a lot more questions than answers.

Still, what she witnessed left her with a terrifying smile – or frown depending on how one looked at it. This proctor, Jack, was it? Jack was the key to improving her plant magic. As long as she could glean some direction, it would suffice. That match had already given her a hint.

A fire started to burn deep within. And so, that night, Ai practiced her magic more than usual, excited for tomorrow’s quest.